In the words of the late, great actor Carroll O'Connor, "A critic can say what he wants. Most of them are dumbbells. They don't understand art. They can't create it. They don't know what it is when they see it . .."
It never ceases to amaze me how many people without an ounce of talent feel that they are qualified to rip apart the hard work of those who have been blessed with performing talent and creative talent. A few of the "critics" who have written in the "user comments" here are pretty astounding, too -- the ones who completely missed the points of the movie "Billy Jack," one who knowingly states that this was the first Billy Jack film and one who "somes" up the movie "in one word . . . Dumb!" A beautiful statement from an individual who spells the word sum: s-o-m-e. Sure, "Billy Jack" is dated, painfully liberal-minded and obviously independently-made, at not much cost. But, the film's issues are just as valid today as they were thirty years ago. The story is interesting, the characters are believable and portrayed *more* than well enough. This movie has been unjustifiably trashed through the years. It is truly an under-rated and over-bashed classic.
I have seen this movie so many times, I know every word of dialogue by heart, and I have for years. When the movie first came out, I paid to see it in a local theater at least 8 - 10 times, each time with a different friend or a different combination of friends. When it hit television, I watched it a couple of more times. After the home video age was well upon us, I recorded TBS's mercilessly chopped-to-shreds version of it and watched that several times. A couple of years ago, when Billy Jack Enterprises made the newly-restored video version available, I just HAD to purchase one, I've seen *that* at least a dozen times. I love this movie every bit as much now, as a middle-aged man, as I did as an impressionable teenager. . . if not more.
It never ceases to amaze me how many people without an ounce of talent feel that they are qualified to rip apart the hard work of those who have been blessed with performing talent and creative talent. A few of the "critics" who have written in the "user comments" here are pretty astounding, too -- the ones who completely missed the points of the movie "Billy Jack," one who knowingly states that this was the first Billy Jack film and one who "somes" up the movie "in one word . . . Dumb!" A beautiful statement from an individual who spells the word sum: s-o-m-e. Sure, "Billy Jack" is dated, painfully liberal-minded and obviously independently-made, at not much cost. But, the film's issues are just as valid today as they were thirty years ago. The story is interesting, the characters are believable and portrayed *more* than well enough. This movie has been unjustifiably trashed through the years. It is truly an under-rated and over-bashed classic.
I have seen this movie so many times, I know every word of dialogue by heart, and I have for years. When the movie first came out, I paid to see it in a local theater at least 8 - 10 times, each time with a different friend or a different combination of friends. When it hit television, I watched it a couple of more times. After the home video age was well upon us, I recorded TBS's mercilessly chopped-to-shreds version of it and watched that several times. A couple of years ago, when Billy Jack Enterprises made the newly-restored video version available, I just HAD to purchase one, I've seen *that* at least a dozen times. I love this movie every bit as much now, as a middle-aged man, as I did as an impressionable teenager. . . if not more.